Something Feral
by AkumaStrife
Summary: "He watched as the wolf trotted down the stairs and sent him one last curious glance before disappearing around the corner. Leon waited a moment before following, but the wolf had vanished, only the memory of that bright gaze remaining." /1st GameVerse/
1. Chapter 1

The air was dark and dank with the putrid smell of the deceased; mist curling for the pure intent of choking.

"_Are you CRAZY?" _a voice roared. The astonished question was met with silence. "You haven't fulfilled your end of the deal yet—" the voice hissed, but was cut off by an even interruption.

"Neither have you."

There was more silence; it stretched and strained until the air was thick with violent tension.

"Now you listen here, you _spiky-headed MORON_! I need you to stop thinking and get your apathetic ass back out there and destroy Wonder Boy. Are we clear?"

"…I'm leaving."

The space the two occupied erupted in blue flames, accompanied by a frustrated scream. "No one, NO ONE, walks out on a deal with the Lord of the Dead! You hear me?"

There was no verbal answer, only the soft sound of retreating footsteps. A low growl slipped from the more outspoken of the two as he irately clenched his fingers, long nails cutting into palms.

"I'll show you…I'll show you what happens when you mess with _me. _No one walks away from _me, _no one backs out until the agreement has been fulfilled…"

The small cavern filled with light, and with the blinding luminosity came the balancing shadows. Shadows with hooked claws and bared fangs, twisted in cruel punishment and dripping with poison. Shadows that howled with the thrill of the hunt and the promise of fresh meat. Shadows that raced along the walls and peeled away to twist around their newest victim.

Hades' vindictive laughter echoed through the dark and empty tunnels, melting with the sudden screams that burst forth. The pained cries rose in volume as something more excruciating than cloth ripped and tore. Bones -under too much stress- finally snapped and gave out, causing the prey to let out a bark of agony.

Then suddenly the shadows cackled with glee and rushed out of the room as if wind down the length of the tunnels, and the tortured was left alone in complete silence.

Briefly he tried to drag himself across the rough stone, but let out a high-pitched cry at the effort and stilled. He lay at the base of the throne of hell, unable to keep in the weak whine.

And then there was another brilliant flash of light, before all was silent and dark once more.

* * *

><p>"So Squall, how was your day?" Yuffie chirped brightly, hands fidgeting behind her back as she leaned forward inquisitively.<p>

They didn't exactly have 'day' or 'night' in Traverse Town, as 'day' was maybe a little less pitch black and a little warmer than 'pretty cold', but as usual Leon kept his corrections and technicalities to himself. It wasn't like it would've helped anyways; Yuffie said whatever she pleased…take his name for instance.

And so he merely stared at her blankly, one eyebrow quirked in annoyance. "That's _Leon_, for the last time." She continued to smile as if the statement wasn't made at all. He stared back for a few moments before sighing and rolled his eyes. "My day was fine, not very productive though."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she commented dutifully. Leon went back to cleaning his gunblade, pretending not to notice how the ninja plopped down on his bed beside him. She kicked out her legs, swinging them back and forth, as if waiting for something. He knew what she was waiting for, he could tell by the way her eyes darted around –mostly to look at him then away- but he went on ignoring her in favor of his prized weapon.

She let out a sigh.

He ignored it.

She waited for a moment and let out another.

He slowly pushed the specialized bullets into their proper places.

She started humming and watched him intently.

Cid snorted in some cross between amusement and annoyance, going out onto the balcony for a cigarette.

Leon thought about asking where Aerith was, but decided to be nice to Yuffie this once; else she'd probably explode from suppressing whatever news she had.

"Oh, my apologies," he muttered, already not really paying attention to whatever she was about to go _on and on_ about, "how was your day Yuffie?"

She bounced off the bed quicker than he could follow and, with more energy than he expected from someone who spent the entire day working, launched into an overexcited description of her day "It was superawesomethanks, I killed tonsandtons of heartless—"

"Yuffie," Aerith giggled as she entered the red hotel room, flower basket in hand, "if you keep speaking so quickly then I doubt Leon will be able to understand you."

"An-y-ways," Yuffie drawled, switching her gaze from Aerith back to Leon. "I kept the citizens safe like you wanted. Oh, and we got a few new residents today. A bunch of little toys. But it's so weird because they talk and move and everything! The moogles are taking care of them for the time being, so they said we don't need to worry about them."

Leon nodded along to Yuffie's ramble.

"But anyways~ the part that I was mostly excited to tell you about! While I was out totally destroying those heartless I saw this weird looking dog over in the third district! He was real vicious too!"

_That_ caught Leon's attention. He looked up from his gunblade and eyed her, mind working. "Are you sure it wasn't Goofy? Sora could've been passing through for supplies."

"Of course I'm sure!" She stomped her foot to prove her point, hands on her hips. "Now that I think about it, it almost looked like a wolf! All dark gray and ferocious, ripping apart the heartless left and right!" She mimicked the beast animatedly, snapping her jaws at some invisible enemy.

Aerith worriedly looked over to their leader, who was lost deep in possible explanations, then looked back over to the excited ninja as she set her basket on the table and leaned her staff against it. "Yuffie, I want you to keep your distance from the animal you saw today, okay? He could be very dangerous."

"Aw, Aerith," she whined, "but I could train him to be a ninja dog. We had them all the time in Wutai."

"Hey girly, you leave that poor beast alone, ya hear me?" Cid snapped, closing the balcony door behind him, reentering the hotel room to join his young charges.

Aerith hid a smile behind her hand. "Is your concern for the animal or Yuffie?"

The mechanic scowled. "M'not sure yet," He turned to leave –probably back to his shop- thumbing his nose and commanding over his shoulder, "make sure ya'll get some sleep, you gotta be in perfect condition to protect my town."

Right after the sound of Cid's footsteps ceased to echo through the empty hall outside their door Leon stood, shouldering his gunblade. "I'll be back later, I'm going to make one more round for the night." He looked back at the two, eyes softening ever so slightly at Aerith's mothering look. "Remember to lock up behind me."

"Be careful," the gentle girl pleaded, and he nodded once before he was gone as well, boots echoing softly.

"You're really worried about that wolf, huh?" Yuffie asked, flopping back into Leon's bed (something she knew would irritate him).

"Yes, I am," she admitted, sitting next to the ninja. "It's rare for an animal to appear out of nowhere, you know that. People show up when their world has been destroyed, but the only animals here are heartless. There's a reason that wolf showed up here, and it can't be good."

Yuffie turned thoughtful. "Watching it…I could tell there was something _off_ about it. Something beyond animalist instinct; it was killing the heartless like it was its job." She looked up at Aerith with suddenly imploring eyes."Do you think…does Leon know? That it's different?"

"Yes, I think he figured it out." She smiled softly down at the shorter girl, gently combing her fingers through the black hair.

Yuffie grinned back, relaxing a little under Aerith's ministrations. After a few minutes the ninja mumbled sleepily, "When do you think Cloud's going to come back?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure he's fine. He'll come back whenever he's ready."

Yuffie 'hmm'ed and snuggled into Leon's blankets. "I miss him."

"We all do."

* * *

><p>Leon prowled the ever-dark streets of the small town that had become a good enough home. And it was because this was his home for now, because he was one of the few able, that he did everything he could to keep it safe.<p>

He took care of the few stray heartless around the hotel first, taking extra care to clear out the alley behind it, before moving on to the area in front of the gizmo shop.

There weren't too many heartless this evening, but the lion didn't give it any thought, simply focusing on the task at hand. But as he moved along his normal route the absence of heartless swarms started to concern him. In all the time he'd spent here, ever since arriving, there had never been this few of the black creatures.

Warily he straightened from his fighter's stance, troubled gaze sweeping the silent area. Cautiously he made his way up the stairs and around the front of the shops –closed now that it was after nine and usually teaming with heartless— to the door that would take him back to the first district.

The area seemed safe and quiet as well, the only movement coming from the dim light of the scattered light poles and the outline of Cid in his workshop. Leon frowned slightly and gripped his gunblade more securely. Something was up, of that much he was certain.

Keeping his senses alert he jogged down the stairs to the courtyard, the one that collected new arrivals. It was empty as well, so Leon figured if the eerie silence and lack of enemies had anything to do with a new resident: he would've seen or heard them by now, and he doubted it was those toys Yuffie was prattling on about.

He turned to face the large doors leading to the last district, the third district. What ever was causing this anomaly, if anything, would most likely be there. Readjusting his grip he strode forward, pushing through the doors quietly and scanned the borough before him.

Nothing moved, not a sound. And then...there! He heard something out of place. He moved softly to the right and up the stairs. And there at the top in the narrow corridor was _something_, a gray blur, a quick smudge of dark color that was unmistakably taking out the heartless.

Was this the wolf Yuffie had seen?

Another shadow heartless turned into smoke and drifted away. The animal stopped moving and crouched low, a deep guttural sound coming from its throat as it watched the remaining heartless. It stood perfectly still, eyes trained on the yellow floating creature, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike (Leon assumed, as the beast was facing away from him).

Now that Leon could see it properly, he noted that it was definitely a wolf, just like Yuffie had said. Its lean body was covered in dark grey fur, slightly matted, and its legs were very long and skeletal like. Suddenly it sprung, moving forward much quicker than any awkward heartless could manage. It moved closer to the cobbled wall and jumped, using the wall as a means of leverage, long paws kicking off the surface to leap at the panicking heartless and snatched it out of the air. Its teeth crushed through the small creature just as it landed easily back on the ground.

The wolf stood for a moment, seeming to search the area for more enemies before turning to observe Leon. The gunblader was a little taken aback; had the wolf sensed he was there the entire time? Then again, animals were good at sensing that kind of thing.

But he was distracted from such thoughts as he finally got a good look at its face. Its eyes…that's what floored Leon. They were of the strangest, and clearest, shade of blue he'd ever seen, for an animal or human alike. They weren't the typical washed out blue, but rather a shade of ethereal cerulean. And somehow he sensed in them an understanding, humanistic quality.

And so the two stood, observing and sizing each other up. Leon started shifting forward, as if to take a step, but the wolf tensed at the intended movement. It lowered its head, ears pressed back in a warning. Leon kept their gazes locked, taking a deliberate step further. The wolf shrank down slightly, shifting back as it growled low, not necessarily in aggression, but wariness.

The wolf watched him uneasily, keeping its unnerving stare on him as it turned to leave. It was then that Leon noticed that its hind leg had a pretty good-sized gash in it. The blood was drying dark and clotting at the site of injury, and as it started to walk away from him he noted that it was favoring that leg. It probably had more injuries, but who was he to worry about a wild animal? That was something the girls would do. Wild animals didn't want anyone to interfere. He knew what that was like.

He watched as the wolf trotted down the stairs and sent him one last curious glance before disappearing around the corner to the right. Leon waited a moment before following. The only thing at the end of the alley was that door with the glowing flame on it, but the wolf was nowhere to be seen.

The lion shrugged, he wasn't one to obsess over something so silly and poke his nose where it didn't belong. At least he had figured out who was killing all the heartless. Which only made him wonder why the wolf seemed to be going to such great lengths to eradicate all the heartless anyways.

He sighed and idly rubbed at the scar stretching over the bridge of his nose. "Those girls are rubbing off on me," he muttered and turned, gunblade slung over his shoulder casually. He ambled away from the mysterious magician's door and toward the stairs that would take him directly to the second district, completely unaware of the bright blue gaze that watched his departure intently.

All was quiet as he made his way back to the hotel, and he enjoyed the rare calm. It wasn't often that heartless weren't jumping at him every step of the way. He guessed that he had the wolf to thank for that. But he stopped that train of thought, else he'd start wondering all sorts of things; like where it had come from, why it ended up here, and so on. It was very late and those were the sorts of questions he could think about tomorrow, _after_ he got some sleep.

He trudged up more stairs and around the raised walkway that lead to the hotel, thinking that it would be nice to get their own place one of these days. Munny dropped by the heartless could only take them so far though. Shouldering open the main door he found his assigned room easily enough, the red standing out in the dim light. Ramming the key in the lock he swung the door open and stepped in, locking it firmly behind him. He turned to face his sparse room and stopped, sighing lightly.

The girls were curled up in his bed, fast asleep…again. He shook his head and let them continue on, looking peaceful in their momentary bliss. He didn't have the heart to interrupt the easy sleep that eluded them more often than not. He quietly shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it onto the back of a chair, leaning his gunblade against the wall next to the balcony, always within easy reach. Running a hand through his hair he weighed his options and chose the couch instead of taking the bed in the green room, adjacent to his own.

'I can better keep them safe this way,' he tried to reason with himself, flipping off the light and dropping heavily into the crimson couch. He scooted down a little to get more comfortable and sighed in something close to exhaustion and momentary contentment, slowly letting the tension leak from his muscles.

Life wasn't easy there, but at least he wasn't alone, at least he had those he could protect.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning was much like every other morning: dark, chilly, and filled with Yuffie's chatter.

Leon leaned against the wall next to the fireplace in Cid's shop; Aerith on the low green couch, pouring over a healing tome that Merlin lent her. Yuffie was bouncing around, proclaiming herself to be the very best ninja, bothering the moogles on the second floor, and overall being a nuisance in her early morning energy burst. Oh, and Cid was swearing up a storm about this, that, and the other and 'where's my goddamn tea and cigarettes!'

Yeah, typical morning.

"Yuffie." Leon interrupted a fresh argument between the ninja and the mechanic, lazily opening one eye. "I saw your wolf last night."

Her eyes widened in surprise and she was quiet for one blissful moment. Aerith looked up at him worriedly.

"See! I told you it was a wolf!" The short girl pounced on the couch and kneeled on the cushions, looking at the stoic lion over the back of it.

"Yeah, you were right," he admitted again then turned to their healer. "He's…odd; a little _too_ aware for an animal. But Yuffie was right, he was in the third district like she said, and when I found him he was taking out an entire group of heartless. And I'm guessing he'd killed almost all the heartless in the other districts as well."

"Well I'll be…" Cid trailed off, deep in thought about the whole matter, the cigarette hanging between his lips momentarily forgotten. "What are we gonna do about this, Chief?"

Leon flicked his gaze between them, before letting his eyes slide shut once more, shrugging slightly. "I'm not sure yet, it all depends on if he's a threat to the citizens. But I don't think we'll have to worry about that for a while."

"Why's that?" Yuffie asked, head tilting in her confusion.

"Because he was injured when I saw him; not life threatening, but pretty bad nonetheless."

"Oh, the poor thing," Aerith breathed, honestly concerned. "Leon…please Leon, can we help it?"

The lion snorted. "No, it's a wild animal, Aerith, don't be ridiculous. Animals get hurt and heal all the time on their own; he'll be fine." She worried her bottom lip with her teeth, looking torn at his answer.

"Please Leon," Yuffie begged, leaning dangerously forward over the back of the couch and dropped her tone to a distressed whisper. "It could _die_." Both girls were looking at him pleadingly with large, round eyes; lips pulled down in different variations of a pout.

"It did destroy the heartless for you, which in turn kept the citizens safe," Aerith reminded softly. "I would think that put you in its debt."

Leon looked over to Cid for advice, but the mechanic merely threw his hands up in the air in exasperation and huffed loudly, turning his attention back to polishing the wares in his display case. He looked back to the girls and sighed again, massaging his temples.

"All right, you win. But I want no part of this; if he rejects your aid then it's solely you two to blame." They both nodded energetically.

"We understand," Aerith agreed, all business now. "I'll set up my supplies back at the room. If it wouldn't bother you too much, would you mind going with Yuffie to fetch it? She won't be able to carry it back to the hotel on her own." He nodded and kicked off from his place on the wall, fluidly sliding into step behind the ninja with the momentum.

"We'll be back soon," Yuffie promised cheerfully, walking through the door Leon held open for her, before he followed her out.

He turned toward the third district, but Yuffie yanked on his jacket. "Where do you think you're going?"

"The third district. That's where we both saw it, so it would only stand to reason that that's where we'd find it again. Since it's injured, I doubt it'd go very far."

"Wrong!" she shouted, pointing a finger sharply up at him. "Firstly, I have _way_ better tracking skills then you do, so let me do the finding. You're only along for muscle after all. But secondly, and most importantly, it is especially because it's injured that it will not be in the third district at all!"

Leon crossed his arms and scowled down at her. "And how do you figure that?"

"Because now that it's injured it won't stick around for any more fights. It will have holed up somewhere it feels safe and secure. And that place is most likely where ever it first appeared when it came to this world; some where out of the way and quiet."

They frowned at each other for a few more moments before Leon asked, "And how do you know that it didn't show up in the third district; it appears to be there quite a bit."

"Because I am ninja," Yuffie explained, nose in the air, and turned around, facing the stairs that led to the doorway to the second district. "Now come on, I have tracking to do."

Leon kept his mouth shut and followed, deciding to humor her.

There were few heartless, probably a result of the wolf's efforts and the fact that there tended to be fewer of them in the morning hours. Yuffie seemed content to ignore them entirely –leaving them for Leon to take care of- as she searched the area thoroughly. She climbed up on ridiculous ledges and pranced around on rooftops, and he let her have her fun, occupying himself with heartless hunting. The exercise warmed him up quickly, guarding against the chill of the darkness.

"Come pack horse," she commanded, dropping suddenly next to him and flounced under the walkway and into the alley behind the hotel. She looked around intently, finally seeming to have a clue of what she was doing. Thoughtfully she stood in front of the stack of boxes that resided in the corner to their left.

"There's a secret area behind these, did you know that?" she asked, not evening looking at him for an answer. "Here, give me a boost." She readied herself as if waiting to be vaulted over the boxes. It was just as Leon bent down to do as she asked, that she changed her mind. "Wait, I have a better idea. Follow me." She raced back through the small door to the shopping area.

Leon huffed and straightened, muttering, "Like I wasn't already..."

She led him all the way back to Cid's shop and walked around the left side of it, stopping in the darkened alley.

"Yuffie, there's nothing back here; it's a dead end."

"Ah, you blind simpleton, you just have to know where to look." She inspected the back corner covered in shadows, pushing trash out of the way. "Here we go!" she exclaimed and yanked him around a box she had shoved to the side, through a hole in the wall he'd never noticed before. The tunnel was short, and soon they moved into a more open area, one that he easily recognized to be the area behind the boxes she had just been examining.

"A much easier way to back here, right?" she asked, but he wasn't paying any attention to her anymore. There a little ways in front of them was a pair of blue eyes, glowing in the gloom. She noticed it as well and smirked, nudging him as if to remind him that she was right and did, in fact, know what she was doing.

The wolf didn't raise its head, merely watched them intently, a deep sound rumbling low in its throat.

"Well, now what ninja?" he asked, and she faltered.

"Uh…I hadn't exactly thought this far…"

"Right."

The wolf was curled up in one of the corners, side pressed against the boxes. Leon recognized it as a defense maneuver.

"I can't believe I let you two talk me into this…."

He took a step forward and the growl increased, but the beast made no move to get up. Taking that as a good sign he took another, and then another. The wolf snarled openly, teeth flashing in the dim light, but remained lying down. Taking one more step closer Leon finally got a good look at its condition. There were several more injuries than there had been last night, blood oozing sluggishly from ragged gouges over its rib cavity.

He was still several feet away, but slowly reached out his hand anyways. Its ears pressed back flat against its head, snarling louder. At Leon's advance it tried getting to its feet, but its back leg buckled and slid out from underneath it.

It snapped at his fingers a few times, missing as Leon stayed just out of its reach. The moment it stilled, Leon's hand shot forward and wrapped around its muzzle. He ignored how it now thrashed, but kept its jaws firmly closed, and therefore unable to bite him. Soon enough, just as he had predicted, the wolf stopped moving, breathing heavily.

"Yuffie," Leon called softly over his shoulder, "come help me."

With wide, wary eyes she did as he asked, and fearfully replaced his hand around its muzzle with her own. He stooped to get his arms around it, carefully picking it up. He accidentally jostled its wounded leg and it convulsed, the movement causing Yuffie to let go and allowing it to yelp sharply.

"Sorry, sorry," Leon mumbled, trying to be more careful of the limb as he readjusted his grip on the animal, satisfied when he managed to get it firmly pressed against his chest and unable to squirm any longer. It tried to crane its neck around enough to take another snap at his face, but the effort proved to take too much energy and it fell limp in his arms, breathing labouredly.

Yuffie just looked at him in astonishment as they ducked through the small opening leading back to the alley. "You are crazy. That animal is frightening and would probably take my hand off and you just picked it up like it was nothing."

Leon continued walking back through the first district, ignoring how the wolf growled and tried to wriggle out of his grasp, and shot her an unconcerned glance. "It's wounded and sick, it can't really do much. You're the one who wanted to save it, anyways."

"Still..." She muttered.

They continued on in silence, Yuffie shamelessly watching the wolf, and the wolf looking as if glaring back in return. It had long since ceased its struggling, as that exerted more energy than it seemed to have, but it had no problems staring the ninja down over the bend of Leon's elbow.

She reached out a hand to it, and it growled warningly. She ignored it and it promptly took a snap at her invading fingers. She yelped and pulled them back protectively against her chest.

"That's what you get," Leon snorted. "Leave him alone."

"But he's just so furry and soft looking!" she whined, big fake tears in her eyes. Leon simply ignored her complaining and followed her into the hotel hallway, tighting his grip around the now struggling animal and waiting for her to unlock the green door.

"Aerith! We're home!" Yuffie called, twirling around childishly.

"Good, I was starting to worry." The healer smiled.

"We'll put him in my room." Leon nodded to the door connecting their rooms, waiting for one of them to open it for him. Aerith did as he indicated and tilted her head in confusion.

"Why?"

"Because it's a wild animal," he reminded, setting the restless wolf in the corner farthest from the connecting doorway. "And it's my job to keep you girls safe. No way in hell I'm leaving it unattended in your room."

Aerith merely smiled and left to fetch her supplies.

"He's pretty banged up, huh?" Yuffie commented, rocking back on her heels as she bent down low enough to be on eye level with it. It watched her with half lidded eyes, barely able to keep its head up.

"Poor thing," she mumbled, and slowly lifted her hand. It watched her warily, but didn't react farther, so she inched forward. It twitched when her fingers barely touched its ear, but apparently didn't have the energy to protest the touch. She smiled brightly and gently rubbed behind its ears.

"He must be in a lot of pain." Aerith frowned, toting her supplies in her flower basket. "Wild animals won't allow human interference unless they are far past a certain point of injury."

"But then again, you said he may not be a normal animal though, right?" Yuffie asked looking over her shoulder and retracting her hand. The healer nodded and knelt down in front of the wolf, who seemed to calm at her presence.

"There, we'll fix you right up," Aerith spoke softly to the animal and held her hands over its head, where they started to glow a soft white. Within a matter of moments the wolf's eyes drooped closed and its head fell heavily to the floor, out cold.

"I'm going to get something to eat." Leon muttered, comfortable leaving them now that the animal was knocked out.

"Bring back something sweet!" Yuffie called after him, Aerith chuckling as her hands glowed green with the activation of curaga spells.

"Whatever."

* * *

><p>"What's up, Chief?" Cid asked, glancing over at the lion collapsed on his couch.<p>

Leon had an arm thrown over his eyes and made some sort of undistinguishable sound in response. The mechanic quirked something close to a smile and chewed on his toothpick, waiting for Leon to answer him in his own time.

"They're being foolish. It is a waste of time to help that animal; it'll just get hurt again."

"Is that all yer worried 'bout?"

"I can't keep them safe like this. We can't keep that wolf in the room."

"Didn't you say it could barely move?"

"Yeah, but what happens when it recovers? I can't allow it to turn on them; what if I'm not around?"

"Stop yer griping about 'what ifs'," Cid barked, never one for sympathizing.

Leon sat up, watching the older man thoughtfully as he sorted through a box of accessories and gummi parts.

"Can I leave it here with you?"

"Hell no! It'd scare away all my customers!"

"Besides Sora I really don't think you have many others," Leon pointed out.

Cid growled and chucked a heavy pendant at his head. "No. Besides, you know as well as I do that once that thing has improved then it'll be gone faster than Yuffie can steal materia."

The gunblader nodded, and got up. "I guess I better get back then." He collected the plastic bag he had set next to the fireplace.

"Crazy kids," Cid mumbled to himself, shaking his head as soon as Leon left.

Leon nodded to the moogles as he passed, making his way back to the hotel, wondering how long Aerith's spell would last. Pushing the door to the room open he tossed his gunblade on the bed, greeting Aerith and watching Yuffie quizzically.

"Look Squall! I can pet him now!" she giggled, grinning widely.

"It's Leon," he muttered automatically. She had the sleeping wolf's head in her lap, stroking the thicker gray fur around his neck. He rummaged around in the bag before handing Aerith a blue apple-like ball.

"Thank you," she breathed gratefully and took the ether from him.

"And me? What about me? What'd you bring me Squally?" Yuffie asked excitedly, fidgeting from her place on the floor.

He rolled his eyes and tossed her the bag, ignoring her squeals of "Ohh~ I love crepes! I haven't had them in sooooo long! Thank you Squally!"

It was then that he noticed what the healer was doing.

"Is that…my brush?" he asked slowly, eye twitching slightly. The girls smiled innocently, Aerith continuing her task of combing the snarls out of the wolf's fur. "You're grooming that filthy animal…with my hairbrush," he said again, his tone rising a fraction.

"Oh, don't throw a fit," Yuffie muttered around her mouthful of the thin pancake treat.

"You know, it wasn't too long ago that we took in a dying lion," Aerith started gently, as if telling a fairytale to a disagreeable child. "You may remember how angry and temperamental he was at first. He was difficult and the townspeople told us to give it up, that our love and care, all of our healing, would amount to nothing. That he'd just continue to lash out at us and only come home once he was covered in wounds again." She stopped her movements and turned to smile softly up at him. He frowned and looked away in something akin to shame.

"But we stuck with it and look how that turned out. Everything will be all right, you'll see. Just give him a chance…just like we did for you."


	3. Chapter 3

_He can hardly see; can hardly take three steps without stumbling. _

"_Squall!" a voice cries, and he hurries his reckless bounds. But it does him no good: the smoke is too thick, the citizens too frenzied, the carnage and destruction around them too abundant. _

_He's never going to make it in time. He fears this above all else. _

_He can barely make out Irving and Zell fighting at the other end of the courtyard, but doesn't turn away from his original path to help them. They'll be okay (Shiva…if only he'd known the results of his thoughtlessness!)._

"_Squall!" the voice screams, clearly more panicked than the first time. He does his best to cut a path through more of the writhing black creatures, but they are proving to be too much for him, in both strength and numbers. If only he was stronger! If only he had the power to protect them!_

_And then it happens: his boot catches on a pipe sticking out of the broken concrete and he goes down, leg twisted at an uncomfortable angle. The air is knocked out of him and so all he can do is watch as hundreds of the creatures overtake her, her shrieks of desperation and pain rising above the rest—_

Leon woke with a start; trying to fill his lungs with something other than the panic fueled shallow gasps and rubbed at his scar reflexively as he sat up. He attempted to guess the time and also wondered where Sora could be now…anything to redirect his thoughts from the horrific memories of tendrils of darkness devouring his home and the twitching heartless tearing apart those he cared about.

A sudden thought struck him and he slowly turned to look into the corner of the room. The wolf was awake; ears alert and staring at him with those piercing blue eyes that cut through the darkness. He sensed no animosity from it, rather a wary curiosity. Leon made a vague noise through his nose and checked the time before lying back down and turning over, away from the prying eyes.

Show no fear; beasts fed off of it.

* * *

><p>The next time he woke was right before dawn. Or rather, the clock on his bedside table read 5:17 and he simply imagined that at some point the pitch black sky would lighten with pastel hues of pink and yellow, and the chilly air would warm with the sun's first hours of touching the world, gently bidding it to rise.<p>

But it wouldn't: the sky would continue to stay dark and the air would whip with its typical sharpness; the citizen would wake to an empty world of hopelessness where not even the moon dared to reside.

Ah, and that damn animal was here too. Lovely.

Leon shrugged on his jacket and slung his gunblade over his shoulder, returning the wolf's even stare as he backed out of the shadow-ridden room.

The heartless were teaming in their usual numbers, something that comforted him in a warped way. He was still needed. People still relied on him to protect them. He _could_ protect them: he had that strength now. He threw himself into his work then, trying to distract his thoughts from following that particular path.

Back at the hotel rooms the others had finally risen, now addressing the situation Leon wanted nothing to do with.

"Please, please, please Cid?" Yuffie begged, the mechanic in question chewing on his early morning cigarette in aggravation. Aerith tried to hide a smirk at the display, hand feeding the still weak wolf bits of cold meat. It isn't able to get up yet, and so was forced to mind its manners and gently take the food from the pretty girl's hand.

"C'mon Cid, can't we keep him?"

"Goddammit Yuffie—" but she cut him off once more.

"I promise to take care of him! I'll feed him and take him for walks and keep his fur clean and—" It was Cid's turn to interrupt her beseeching.

"Stop playin' house! It's a wild animal y'stupid girl, not some puppy ya can 'save' from the streets like some damn fairytale!" he shouted back, ripping the cigarette from his mouth as he scowled.

She glared heatedly right back at him, hands planted defiantly on her slim hips, trying to prove that he didn't intimidate her and wouldn't win this one. "Yeah, well he doesn't really act like some wild beast, now does he? He acts like a dog who's been abused for too long and needs someone to love him! We saved his life, and it seems like even he knows it!"

They stared at each other for a few more moments, Aerith pointedly ignoring them and letting them figure it out on their own. Finally Cid swore and threw his hands up in the air in frustration. "Fine! Do whatever the hell ya want! But don' come cryin' to me when everything doesn't work out peachy like yer story books!" He left to go open up his shop for the day, swearing all the way down the brightly lit hall.

"He doesn't know anything…" The ninja muttered to herself angrily, plopping down on Leon's bed. "So Aerith, what do you think we should name him?"

The other girl smiled with something close to affection and pity, before replying softly, "I don't know."

"Yeah, it's difficult to decide." She restated, rolling over so she could peer over the edge of the bed at the wolf. She watched him quizzically, head tilting this way and that until it finally looked over and met her gaze, his own cold and calculating.

"You know…" Yuffie started, expression morphing into one of deep consideration and puzzlement, "his eyes are just as bright as Cloud's, did you notice that?"

Aerith wiped her hands on a damp towel, not looking over as she replied wistfully, "the same strange shade of blue too."

Yuffie's expression suddenly lit up, just as Leon entered the room. "Leon!" she shouted happily, momentarily distracted, "Did you bring breakfast?" He shook his head wordlessly. She pouted and rolled over onto her back, then seemed to remember what she had been thinking so hard about. "Hey guys, what was the name of that silly image Cloud always had on his stuff? You know, that wolf emblem thingy on his shoulder guard? I think he had a motorcycle named after it too…"

Aerith shook her head, not able to remember, when Leon suddenly blurted, "Fenrir."

"Exactly!" Yuffie snapped her fingers, and Aerith regarded Leon with an odd expression, as if truly believing he -of all people- would be the last to recall such a trivial detail.

"I was actually thinking this earlier," she went on, "but the face shape is kinda the same, his and Fenrir's. So that's going to be his new name! Fen for short of course."

The lion digested that for a moment. "…And why exactly are we naming it?"

"Because Cid said I could keep him!"

Leon wasn't even sure how to respond to that. It was obviously the most _ridiculous_ thing he had ever heard. He was about to tell her as such before a different thought struck him, and so changed his direction of speech.

"You can say you're going to keep it all you want, but there's little guarantee it'll stick around once it's healed." He leaned against the wall next to the bed, arms crossed and eyes closed in a show of nonchalance and confidence. The argument would go more smoothly for him this way; he'd avoid most of the impending conflict that would've transpired had he insulted her intelligence.

Yuffie made a noise of protest, propelling herself into an upright position and glowered darkly. "Just you wait and see!" she spat and stormed out of the room.

Aerith smiled sheepishly at him as she followed. "We'll meet you at Cid's shop after we get something to eat."

Leon simply snorted at the ninja's childish behavior once they were gone, then looked over to the wolf in the corner. It was standing, shakily but still up, looking as if concentrating very hard as it tested its back leg, seeing how much pressure it could apply before it gave out.

It stopped and shifted its bright eyes to see Leon watching it, and sat back down. Leon frowned, and the wolf refused to meet his gaze again.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe it!" Yuffie whined, face buried into the couch cushions. Aerith sat down beside her and rubbed her back consolingly.<p>

"Oh shut yer trap and drink yer goddamn tea!" Cid shouted irritably, wiping down the glass case that sat on the counter.

"I can't believe Fenrir left me!" Yuffie cried, ignoring the mechanic altogether –which Cid did not like and only caused him to yell at her more. Leon sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose at the on-coming headache, memories of the previous night springing to his attention without his consent.

_Leon stirred, slowly drifting into consciousness. Frowning slightly he sat up, fingers brushing his bangs out of his eyes. A glance at the worn clock confirmed his fears: that it was, in fact, nowhere near the morning hours yet. With a sigh he slid out of bed and padded softly over to the desk he never used and picked up his clothes; might as well take out heartless to release some of his pent up energy. Goddamn memories._

_It was as he tugged his shirt on that he turned to grab his jacket, and noticed the wolf. It was sitting up now; eyes clear with coherence and posture more alert than his own, just watching him. _

"_You're ready to split, huh?" Leon finally spoke, almost breathing the words into the darkness. "Just going to use Aerith's kindness and leave once you don't need her anymore." He spoke the words as if an accusation, as if he truly believed the wolf could understand him –he doubted that. _

"_Doesn't matter to me either way, things will be easier with you gone actually, but it'll break Aerith's heart." He continued, pulling on his boots, trying not to think about how he was talking to a wild animal just as though it were human; trying not to notice how foolish he was becoming. _

_He finished with his preparations and eyed the wolf again, who hadn't looked away from him yet, as if entranced by his words (or voice in general -he was pretty sure it had no idea what he was saying). "But then I guess I can't really blame you, you can't help being selfish: you're just an animal." _

_The wolf had the decency to look away, appearing to look ashamed. Leon snorted at the action, at his own idiocy for thinking a monster _could_ possess and show such a humanistic sentiment. He turned away and quietly went to exit the room, leaving the door open as he cast a glance over his shoulder: the wolf watched his every move with intense interest. He walked to the end of the hall and out of the hotel, leaving that door open as well; not even turning when he heard the wolf bolt from his room and out into the night. _

"Stop moaning about it," Leon commanded, snapped out of his thoughts by her high volume. "It was just an animal. It hasn't even been around long enough for you to become attached to it."

Yuffie sat up and glared at him. "Shut up Squall," she said evenly, dead serious. He flinched at the way she used his real name, at how it wasn't for teasing, but to prove some point. "I don't know why you've had such a stick up your ass about this whole thing, but you need to chill out and stop taking out your frustrations about your past on me! It's not like you're the only one who's had bad things happen!" She stomped out of the accessory shop.

Cid whistled in appreciation, "Damn, girl's gotta mouth on her, ain't she?" Leon frowned at him, and Cid held up his hands in mock surrender. "Sorry, Ice Princess."

The lion's eyes narrowed and he turned to exit the shop as well, Aerith surprisingly following close behind. She didn't say anything as they made their way down the steps, but her aura, the way she softly brushed against him, spoke louder than her voice could probably reach: _'Do you want to talk about it?'_

He didn't answer, didn't even look at her, but he didn't need to: she understood well enough. Smiling sadly she laid a hand on his arm gently. "You used to have a dog, didn't you?"

"Not exactly…but in a sense, yes. He belonged to—" but he found that the words wouldn't come. He cleared his throat and tried again, ignoring how it tightened, "a friend. He belonged to a friend." Before he could stop it, a stray memory from long ago surfaced from the recess of lost memoirs.

"_He-umph!" Squall's greeting was cut off by a large furry body, which was more than happy to pin him to the ground and say hello by the way of a couple hundred licks to his face. _

"_Isn't he cute?" a girlish voice giggled, helping the boy by pushing the rather huge dog off him. "My dad found him out in the park and he doesn't have any tags, so Daddy said I could keep him! I named him Angelo!"_

"_That's great, Rin," Squall muttered, though his tone conveyed that he couldn't care less as he rubbed the hem of his shirt over his face. But when he looked up at the girl's beaming expression, and the stupidly happy dog that was the source of her delight, he couldn't help but think that maybe the dog was all right and he wouldn't mind having it around. _

Leon shook his head, as if trying to dislodge the memory from his mind. Aerith cocked an eyebrow in curiosity, waiting for him to elaborate on whatever had caused his eyes to cloud over in regret.

He simply shook his head again and headed for the world's door, "I'm going out." The healer frowned, hating to see him close himself off from everyone and hide behind protective barriers. She also noted how he didn't specify when he'd be coming back, which for someone like him could be a very long time.

"But what about the town? Who will keep it safe from the heartless?" she asked, wanting only for him not to leave.

The lion snorted, "Yuffie and _that beast_ seem to be able to manage it just fine." He pushed the large doors open forcefully, gone within a blink of an eye.

"…But what about the rest of us…your team?" Aerith whispered, a streak of dejection tangible in her tone.


	4. Chapter 4

"Stupid Squall…" Yuffie muttered, swinging her over-sized shuriken around wildly and decapitating handfuls of heartless at a time. There was a streak of gray to her right and, figuring it a heartless, she whipped the large weapon in that direction. But there wasn't anything there and the shuriken imbedded itself into a rock wall. She waved away the oddity and pried it out of the rocks, continuing on her quest of venting her frustration. The second district was strangely devoid of heartless though, so she pouted and muttered more obscenities about Leon as she climbed the single stairway. Again, no heartless above, which led her to the gizmo shop.

Thankfully it _was_ teeming with heartless and she was able to lose herself in the concentration of battle. They swarmed around her, darting in and out for quick attacks, something she matched them in easily. Round and round she spun, destroying her adversaries with glee until only one remained; and for that one she made a leap, using her momentum to drive her shuriken right through it and sending them both crashing to the ground. She jumped to her feet, bouncing slightly as she brushed herself off and smiling in satisfaction. But quickly her mood darkened and she scowled once more at the returning thoughts of the morning's argument.

"Where does he get off, anyways?" she angrily asked aloud, pushing through the brightly colored door and climbing up the ladder to the area above. It was one of the highest points and gave her the opportunity to look over the borough as a whole. She threw down a smoke bomb and took out any heartless that dared appear, almost losing her footing when she spun too close to the edge. Once everything was silent again she dropped heavily to sit on the edge, dangling her feet over into empty air. The district below her was vacant as usual, a rare person frightfully crossing the open area as fast as possible every so often. Most of the shops lining the upper walkway were designed with connecting doors, so no one had to go outside if possible. It was a rather sad existence the people lived there, and it only made Yuffie thankful again that she could fight and therefore go where she pleased, never bound by the heartless' whims.

She was pulled out of her thoughts by a flash down by the fountain, a dark smudge against the darker background; but it was gone before she could locate it. Yuffie huffed: she didn't actually like upsetting Leon. Sure, it was fun to annoy him, but not to the point of where they were in a real fight. She started to wonder if maybe she had been too hasty in her outburst earlier, if maybe she had been insensitive to something she wasn't privy to. It was very possible, as Leon had always been very secretive about the life he lived before their world was destroyed.

"All right!" she exclaimed, standing quickly and sliding down the ladder. "I just have to make this right somehow, and then everything can go back to normal!" But she hesitated when she reached the ground. "But what if I make things worse? Should I do anything at all, or would it be better to just let it die out?" She stood in deep thought and scratched her ear a little, before her eyes lit up and she snapped her fingers in sudden revelation. "Merlin! He's a pretty wise dude; he'll definitely know what I should do!" And so she scampered over to the third district, dodging heartless as she went and barreled through the magician's door, happily jumping from one rock to the next across the lake.

Yuffie burst through the old blanket serving as a doorway. "Merlin, I need your advice on something!" she called out, but stopped short: no one was there. The room, although looking very lived in with the candles all still lit, was empty. She wilted at her bad luck: no one could ever tell when Merlin would be back. He was worse than Cloud sometimes, leaving without a trace and not coming back until months later with no explanation. She whined a bit and collapsed on the edge of the platform in the middle of the room, propping her elbows on her knees and letting her head rest in her hands.

"Now what am I supposed to do?" Suddenly there was a faint tinkling sound; a little pool of glitter swirled together and rolled across the floor. She cocked her head a bit, watching it approach her with rapt fascination. It rose, gaining mass and height until the fairy godmother sat on the dais beside her.

She gave a pitying sort of smile and opened her arms a bit. "There, there, dear. Everything will be all right. Why don't you tell me what's going on." Yuffie leaned into her arms, letting the fairy godmother settle her head against her chest and begin stroking her hair gently, just like Aerith sometimes did.

"I made Leon angry," she muttered miserably, "for real this time. It all started with Fenrir."

"Fenrir?" the godmother asked, looking both confused and like she was trying to remember something, "You mean that wolf…?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"Well I saw him arrive, even healed his wounds as much as I could, the poor b—" she stopped with puzzlement before finally understanding. She chuckled fondly and patted Yuffie's back. "Why don't you go on dearie."

"Fen was pretty banged up when we found him you see, so Aerith and I wanted to help him, but Leon _really_ didn't like that for some reason. He got all bratty and disagreeable, but in the end he let us. He was against it the whole time though, and yelled at me for being upset Fenrir had left on his own." She stopped and bit her lip a little before continuing, "And then I said some pretty mean things back to him, so now he's totally upset with me and I don't know what to do."

"Well to me it seems like you should apologize. A simple, sincere apology can usually solve just about anything."

"But he probably won't believe me. He hardly takes anything I say seriously, he'll think I'm just messing around."

The fairy godmother moved her back into an upright position and squeezed her shoulders gently. "Why don't you give it a try anyways?"

Yuffie thought it over uncertainly, but then bounced up excitedly and jabbed her finger in the air. "Or~ I could just go pick a fight with him, let him spar for a bit and vent it all out, and then everything will be forgiven!" She watched the fairy godmother eagerly, waiting for approval in her genius plan. "Guys are weird like that, you know?"

"Yuffie dear, I don't think—"

"No, no," the ninja cut her off, "he and Cloud used to work out all their problems like that back when we were younger. It's sure to work, I just know it!"

"Yes, but Cloud is—"

"Thank you so much for your help fairy godmother!" Yuffie swooped down to hug her tightly before bounding out the door. The godmother was left suddenly alone, chuckling in amusement and shaking her head.

"That girl, so full of _life_. It's a good thing she's here with them." She dissolved into a cloud of glitter once more.

* * *

><p>"What do you mean he's not here?" Yuffie asked, frowning down at the Dalmatians. The two dogs licked her fingers gently as their way of apologizing. She huffed and flopped down on the couch, for once ignoring how puppies jumped and wiggled their way all over her, begging for attention. She pet a few absentmindedly; she hadn't seen him all day, which meant he wasn't about in the open. And when he wasn't killing heartless—which was, like, all the time—then he usually swung by the Dalmatians' house to check up on them. Where else could he have gone?<p>

"At least we know Sora's doing his job," she noted, counting six more puppies than a few days before. She frowned at the thought of Sora, the boy younger than her yet out there doing what she couldn't. Why had the keyblade chosen him, a mere kid? Was he really that much better than her or the others? She sunk down farther into the cushions; he probably wasn't insensitive like she was, or as foolish either. Maybe that's why he was out there, saving the world, and she wasn't. Maybe that's why she was stuck playing the guard while he was being the hero.

Her favorite puppy, the one with ears and feet looking as if dipped in ink, forced his way on top of her and began licking her nose, as if trying to console her. She sighed and smiled, lifting the puppy up to stare at him accusingly. "How can Leon _not_ be here? You're just so damn cute!" She snuggled him close and giggled when a thought struck her. "It's too bad, but Fen doesn't seem like the cuddly type. If only I could take _you_ home." She giggled some more as the puppy wagged his tail vigorously, licking her face. Suddenly she sat up and held the puppy up in excitement, the idea of 'home' sending her mind spinning. "That's it! He's probably down in the waterway." She set the puppy down before running out, being careful not to let any of the dogs out.

But going down into the waterway showed just an empty cavern, no gunblader to be found. Yuffie stomped her foot in agitation, splashing some of the stagnant water. "Where the hell is he? Here I am, going out of my way trying to apologize and he's totally M.I.A.!" She sloshed through the water, at a loss for where to look next. If she'd been through all the districts, and he wasn't with the Dalmatians or at his training ground, then where could he be? Surely not the hotel room, as he avoided it all cost, once admitting that it would never feel like home. Where in the world could he have run off too?

And then it hit her: he wasn't anywhere on the world at all. She'd made him _leave_. Who knew when he was coming back now, _if_ he came back at all.

Yuffie sniffled a bit as she sat on the rocks before the exit, bringing her legs up and tucking her knees under her chin; not leaving the waterway just yet.

After a while she took a deep breath, a look of determination crossing her face and wiping her eyes. "Come on now, Yuffie," she chided. "There's no time to be wishy-washy. You're not weak, you're Wutai and Wutai don't cry." She jumped off the rock, bounding through the water to the accessory shop. "If Squall's going to be stubborn and not come back, then we'll just have to give him a home to come back for."

Because whether they liked it or not, they were a family, and families looked out for each other.


	5. Chapter 5

As soon as Leon stepped through the gate he knew something was off. It was quiet and dark like usual, but there was a tension in the air; thick impatience. Like the whole district was holding its breath.

There was the slightest scrape, almost too quiet and slow to hear, but he brought his gunblade up just as a dark shape dropped down on him from above. He blocked easily, pushing Yuffie away. She slid on the cobblestone for a moment, almost loosing her footing, but rolled and was sprinting for him again. He blocked and followed through, Yuffie spinning like expected just out of reach, flipping into an overhead attack. It was familiar, the sparring almost a dance, and it lulled him into a meditative-like state. Mind blank and only focusing on his moves and anticipating what Yuffie might do next.

Yuffie ducked under a swing and twisted, bringing her foot towards his chest. He stepped back and caught it without trouble. But she stopped moving, breathing heavily and letting him stand there with her ankle at a ninety-degree angle in his grip.

He didn't understand why she'd stopped, in the past both of them lasting much longer and only stopping when one was on the ground. He opened his mouth, but she beat him to it.

"Where have you been, you _ass_?"

She was angry and he didn't quite understand why. He narrowed his eyes and threw her foot down with unnecessary force. "What's it to you?"

"Aerith's been worried sick. You know how she gets when we don't check in for weeks at a time."

His next retort died on his tongue because Yuffie was suddenly less angry and more hurt, suddenly weary as if she had been kept up by his travels as well. Why did she take it so personally that he lef—oh. With a sigh she smiled guilty. What a strange girl, to think an ambush was a sufficient way to apologize. He told her as much and her expression faltered, but he just rolled his eyes and patted her on the head. She grinned widely, her happiness and relief so tangible it was almost blinding.

He turned towards the accessory shop but she grabbed his arm with a grin, eyes twinkling with mischief. "There's something you need to see in the third district." She skipped ahead, expecting him to follow as she rambled on about all the little dramas he'd missed while he was gone. Her new job delivering postcards, heartless reports, and the like. Since when was Yuffie interested in any work besides heartless hunting?

Yuffie stopped right in front of the small house, practically trembling with contained excitement. "Welcome home!" she yelled and threw open the door with flourish. Cid was putting together a bed frame in one corner, a bigger one already leaning against the wall, and Aerith sorting through their few boxes of trinkets and items.

"What's all this?"

Cid nodded his head in greeting. "Took you long enough. Get all that brooding out of your system?"

Aerith smiled, hugging him regardless of the fact that he wasn't one for such things. She was relieved, he could tell just by her grip and how long it took her to let go. Like she was worried he'd take off again if she did. There was worry still in her eyes, but she didn't bring up what happened before. "Isn't it wonderful? Finally a place of our own."

"I don't understand…"

Yuffie rocked on her heels, hands clasped tightly behind her back. "It was a bit pricey, but the landlord gave us a huge discount because of how often we get rid of the heartless around here. Thanks to Sora, Cid was able to get his mechanic job back, so between that and my mail delivery we managed the down payment. We have a home now, Leon, a real home." He could tell it was taking everything she had to stand still, her excitement bubbling over; her expression screaming for recognition and approval. Trying so damn hard to make things right, to show that she was sorry and could be more than just a child. And so, for her sake, he quirked a small smile and reached out to shake her shoulder.

"You did good, Yuff."

She beamed, outright laughing, and practically tackled him with in hug. She mumbled something into his shirt, about being glad he was back, and it made his chest surprisingly warm, tight in a different way than the nightmares. He cleared his throat and patted her back awkwardly.

"Yeah well… whatever."

* * *

><p>The next few days were busy; Aerith fretting about not loosing anything in the move and making sure everything was in its proper place, and Leon's hands full with the heartless. They teamed in unusually large hordes near their new house. They were attracted to light, and so it wasn't terribly surprising given the recent events. Yuffie helped as best she could, but someone had to keep the other two boroughs in check.<p>

And then it all came to a grinding halt with the rain. It wasn't often they got rain in Traverse Town, maybe once every so many months, but when it did it poured for days on end. Merlin said it had something to do with the disturbance of far off worlds and broken barriers, the sudden heartless infestation throwing off the balance universally. Whatever it was, it put a stop to everything. No one left their houses without a damn good reason, all the shops were closed, and not even the heartless showed their faces.

Sometimes the rain brought status ailments.

It was on the third day of rain that Aerith propped the door open, looking out into the downpour with a frown. She worried her lip between her teeth and went back to sorting their few possessions. Leon nudged her foot with his own, raising an eyebrow in question when she looked up.

"Once he gets soaked, he'll be back."

Leon didn't ask who, because he knew immediately. He hadn't given the wolf much thought since being back, but it made his jaw tighten. Aerith acted like she didn't notice, busy casting protective enchantments onto jewelry for the ducklings' shop.

"He reminds me of Cloud… and Cloud _always_ came back."

And for some reason Leon felt like that similarity was part of the problem.

Cid grumbled about the draft from his corner, but otherwise didn't rebuke her or order her to shut the door. They'd always been closer to Cloud than he was, as he'd lived across town on their old world (the one he was having a hard time remembering now. There was something about light, and warmth. Wasn't it really beautiful? He couldn't remember, but he does know it was nothing like this suffocating place). He and Cloud had hung out a little during school (was it school? Or was it somewhere else they'd met and formed a tentative friendship?) , but it was nothing compared to the other three. He remembered Yuffie always trailing around behind Cloud, who'd had a lot more patience for her than he did, and Aerith always trying to get them to all hang out together. But he'd had a different group of friends to hang out with (so maybe they didn't go to school together. It must have been somewhere else. Dammit, he wished he could remember!).

The rain continued on, stretching out until almost a week had passed. They were all getting antsy, holed up with each other in the small space. The door was kept open at all times, so the cold only made their moods worse. Leon cast a fire spell in one corner, but it only managed to take the edge off the chill. Their food began to run out and so finally on the sixth day Cid, Yuffie, and Aerith bundled up. Aerith to sell her items to the duckling triplets, and the other two to pick up more supplies, leaving Leon to his much needed space.

But he'd only just lost himself in a book when there was a bit of movement at the door. He looked up and pursued his mouth. Hovering at the opening was Fenrir, favoring one paw and watching him warily. The wolf, fur matted down with grime and water, didn't beg or even make a sound, he just stood there. Waiting. Waiting for permission. It was so oddly human that Leon found himself nodding before he could stop himself. Fenrir hesitated, ears flicking forward and head rising high in what looked like hope.

Leon sighed and beckoned with a jerk of his head, and Fenrir limped in. "I didn't think you'd be back, honestly," he said after a moment, "but Aerith did."

Fenrir shook, flinging water everywhere and slinking closer to the hovering fireball in the corner. He avoided Leon's gaze as he settled on the floor, still dripping. The wolf turned away from him, curling up with his tail covering his nose, and Leon snorted. At least now he could shut the door.

For the most part the wolf kept quiet, snuffling here and there as he slowly warmed up. Once he sneezed and Leon reflexively said 'bless you', just as quickly looking up at the wolf with a scowl. Fenrir only regarded him for a moment before going back to sleep, groaning a bit as he rolled onto his side and stretching out.

It was a while before the others came back. Stumbling through the door and rubbing their hands together, shaking in their enchanted rain gear.

"I really need to get some rugs for in here…" Aerith trailed off when Leon hooked his thumb in the direction of the wolf. "Oh." A smile broke out on her face and she set her bags on the table, seeming to forgive the animal of the water all over the floor. "I knew you'd be back as soon as it got too bad," she said, slowly approaching him. Fenrir didn't move from his spot, just sniffed the air in her direction. She held her hands out, healing magic slowly gathering in one palm, and he thumped his tail once as if in response. With a pleased look Aerith knelt beside him and began to work on his injuries, starting with his broken paw. He pressed his head into her side.

Leon scoffed and went back to his book. "Stop spoiling him."


End file.
